Moloco gains first ad tech certification in IAB Europe retail media programme

IAB Europe said on October 7, 2026 that Moloco has become the first technology provider to complete its Retail Media Certification Programme, joining Albert Heijn and Nectar360 as the third certified company.

In Short

IAB Europe, the trade body for digital advertising in Europe, said an advertising software company called Moloco passed an independent check showing that its retail media figures follow a shared set of counting rules. That matters if you buy ads on shopping sites, because the same sales number can mean different things depending on who counted it and how. Until now only two companies on the retail side had passed such a check, so Moloco is the first company selling the software behind retailers’ ads to pass it too.

What IAB Europe announced

IAB Europe made the announcement on October 7, 2026 at its Retail Media Impact Summit in Amsterdam, according to a release datelined Brussels. An independent audit by ABC UK, the Audit Bureau of Circulations, certified Moloco for its technology capabilities across on-site standard display and sponsored product ads on web, mobile and in-app. The audit confirmed, according to IAB Europe, that Moloco’s measurement and reporting meet the requirements of “IAB Europe’s Commerce Retail Media Measurement Standards”.

Moloco is the third company to hold the certification, after Albert Heijn and Nectar360, and the first technology provider. Five other companies are under audit and more are entering the process, according to IAB Europe, which did not name any of them in the release.

Three audits, one auditor

The two earlier certifications went to the retail side of the market. Albert Heijn, the Dutch supermarket chain, was the first, with its certification announced on September 24, 2025. Nectar360, which the announcement on its own website describes as the Retail Media, Loyalty and Insights business of the Sainsbury’s Group, followed on July 1, 2026. Both sell advertising through retail media networks, and ABC carried out each audit.

The scope column carries the detail that the headline count leaves out. Participants choose which ad products to submitfor audit, so the three certificates do not cover the same inventory: Albert Heijn and Moloco were assessed on on-site placements, whereas Nectar360 was assessed on display and video bought off-site on external platforms. The gaps between announcements were uneven as well – 280 days from the first certification to the second, then 98 days to the third.

How the programme works

IAB Europe opened the Retail Media Certification Programme in beta on October 30, 2024, according to the organisation’s announcement of that date. On May 29, 2025, it declared the programme officially open to retailers following a pilot phase and started a separate beta for ad tech providers, with a full rollout for ad tech planned for 2026, according to IAB Europe’s release of that day. Moloco’s certification arrived in the year set aside for that rollout.

Thresholds, fees and auditors

Three independent auditors are approved: AAM, ABC and CESP. All three certifications so far went through ABC. The auditors are non-profit organisations, and they maintain direct commercial relationships with the companies seeking certification.

Certification requires compliance with at least 90% of the requirements in the measurement framework. A company that falls short can adjust and undergo a re-audit of the areas that did not satisfy the requirements, and a certificate stays valid for two years from the date of issue. Retail media networks pay 7,500 euros for certification; ad tech companies with more than 50 million euros in annual media revenue pay 15,000 euros, and smaller ad tech companies pay 7,500 euros, with audit fees paid separately. Participants must also hold membership of a national IAB or federation in Europe, and IAB Europe has coordinated with the Media Rating Council on aligning MRC accreditation with the certification requirements.

The rulebook behind the audit

IAB Europe published the first Retail Media Measurement Standards in April 2024. A draft of the second version opened for public comment on October 9, 2025, covering online measurement only, with in-store measurement handled separately. The final text came out on January 22, 2026 under the title Commerce (Including Retail) Media Measurement Standards, according to IAB Europe.

The renaming reflects a wider remit. Retail media is one branch of commerce media, and the second version adds metrics for quick commerce, with travel and finance editions planned for 2026. For six months from the January release, retailers and ad tech partners could comply with either the first or the second version.

Defaults inside the framework determine what a certified number means. According to IAB Europe, a 30-day lookback window is the default for reporting, although retailers and ad tech providers must still offer flexible, customisable options. The window is cut to 7 days for quick commerce. A sale counts as gross unless a network states that it reports net, and sponsored product clicks credit the parent product.

What ABC examined and what the parties said

According to Clare Langstaff, Audit Director, Assurance Services at ABC, the audit examined Moloco’s platform capability in detail, covering media metrics, attribution methodologies and retail media insights, together with the guidance provided to clients implementing those capabilities. The work builds on ABC’s experience of applying IAB Europe’s standards across different retail media models, she said, including retail media networks and ad tech platforms. Consistent measurement, in her account, depends not only on those networks but increasingly on “the technology infrastructure that supports them”, and the audit reinforces the importance of looking at both the capability and “the way it’s implemented in practice”.

Marie-Clare Puffett, Senior Director, Industry Development & Marketing at IAB Europe, framed the programme around buyers, who need confidence that measurement is consistent regardless of the retailer, network or technology partner involved. She called Moloco’s certification “an important moment, extending that assurance beyond retailers”.

Kim Ludlow, EMEA Lead for Retail and Commerce Media at Moloco, said the certification reflects the company’s commitment to giving retailers and advertisers confidence that performance is measured against “rigorous, industry-agreed standards”. Greater consistency across retailers and technology partners, she added, will be critical to making retail media easier to buy, evaluate and grow.

Moloco’s place in the market

Moloco describes its Commerce Media business as software that lets retailers and marketplaces build their own advertising businesses. In a September 17, 2025 release tied to a partnership with Skai, Moloco said its Commerce Media product supports more than 125,000 advertisers worldwide. That is a company figure, and the IAB Europe release does not cite it. A certification at the software layer sits differently in the supply chain from a retailer’s own: the same platform can sit behind more than one retailer’s ad business, yet the release lists no retailer that runs the certified capabilities.

Why the supply-chain angle matters

IAB Europe’s argument, set out in the release, is that retail media campaigns increasingly rely on multiple partners across the supply chain, which raises the importance of consistent measurement across retailers, networks and technology providers for advertisers and agencies.

Market data reported by PPC Land points the same way. IAB Europe’s second annual Attitudes to Retail Media Report, which surveyed 180 respondents in 31 markets, found 53% of buyers citing lack of standardisation and 51% citing fragmentation across networks, while the share of brands working with four to six retail media networks rose from 10% to 24%. The same report found that 88% of buyers want return on ad spend measurement but only 71% of networks provide consistent reporting. The sums involved are large: European retail media advertising reached 13.7 billion euros in 2024and is forecast to reach 28.8 billion euros by 2028.

The programme also sits among other IAB Europe work on the same market. A landscape map refreshed on October 14, 2025 organises hundreds of companies across eight categories, which gives a sense of how many parties sit in the stack that the audit now reaches. Separate incrementality guidelines, issued jointly by IAB and IAB Europe on November 3, 2025, classify four measurement approaches by causal strength. The certification, by contrast, assesses conformity with the measurement standards, according to IAB Europe; causal impact is a different question.

None of the material cited here shows whether certification has changed how buyers report or invest. The evidence so far describes buyer sentiment and programme mechanics, not outcomes.

What the announcement leaves open

• Validity and cost: The release gives no issue date for the certificate, so the end of the two-year validity period cannot be calculated from it, and it does not say which fee tier applied.
• Version: The release does not say whether the audit applied the first or the second version of the standards, a point that mattered while either could be used.
• Deployments: ABC names Moloco’s platform capability and the guidance given to clients. It does not mention audits of individual clients’ implementations or say whether retailers using the software receive any certified status.
• Pipeline: Five other companies are under audit, with no names, categories or dates. Is Moloco’s certification a one-off or the front of a queue? The release points to the latter. If all five complete the process, the total would reach eight certified companies.
• Wording: The release names the framework “Commerce Retail Media Measurement Standards”, while IAB Europe’s January 22, 2026 release titles the document Commerce (Including Retail) Media Measurement Standards. The release also says Moloco is the first technology provider to complete the process “so far this year”, a qualifier that the headline and the quotes from IAB Europe and Moloco do not repeat.

Timeline

• April 2024: IAB Europe publishes the first Retail Media Measurement Standards.
• October 30, 2024: IAB Europe opens the Retail Media Certification Programme in beta.
• May 29, 2025: IAB Europe declares the programme officially open to retailers and starts a beta for ad tech providers, with a full ad tech rollout planned for 2026.
• July 30, 2025: IAB Europe’s second annual Attitudes to Retail Media Report is published, naming Nectar360 and Albert Heijn among the initial retailers preparing for accreditation.
• September 24, 2025: Albert Heijn becomes the first company certified under the programme.
• October 7, 2025: Market figures put European retail media advertising at 13.7 billion euros for 2024.
• October 9, 2025: A draft of the second version of the measurement standards opens for public comment.
• October 14, 2025: IAB Europe releases an updated Pan-European Retail & Commerce Media Landscape Map.
• November 3, 2025: IAB and IAB Europe release incrementality guidelines for commerce media.
• January 22, 2026: IAB Europe releases the second version as Commerce (Including Retail) Media Measurement Standards, with a six-month window to use either version.
• July 1, 2026: Nectar360 is certified for off-site display and video, the second company in the programme.
• October 7, 2026: Moloco is certified, the third company and the first technology provider, with five other companies under audit.

• Albert Heijn earns first retail media certification under new IAB Europe programme – covers the first certification, announced September 24, 2025, with the fees, the 90% threshold and the approved auditors.
• European retail media partnerships deepen as standardization gaps persist – reports IAB Europe’s second annual Attitudes to Retail Media Report, which surveyed 180 respondents in 31 markets.
• European retail media spending reaches €13.7 billion with 21.1% growth – sets out 2024 spending and the forecast of 28.8 billion euros by 2028.
• IAB Europe opens public comment on commerce media standards – describes the October 9, 2025 draft of version two, including quick commerce metrics and the online-only scope.
• IAB Europe updates retail and commerce media landscape map – covers the October 14, 2025 refresh of the map, which organises hundreds of companies across eight categories.
• IAB releases measurement framework for commerce media campaigns – explains the incrementality guidelines released jointly by IAB and IAB Europe on November 3, 2025.
• IAB Europe retail media guide: what’s actually holding retailers back – reports the second Bitesize Guide to Change Management in Retail Media, published April 15, 2026.
• IAB Europe releases retail media best practice guides – describes the two guides for buyers and retail media networks released July 15, 2025.

Summary

• Who: IAB Europe, the trade body running the Retail Media Certification Programme; Moloco, the technology provider certified; ABC UK, the independent auditor. Albert Heijn and Nectar360 were certified earlier, and five other companies are under audit.
• What: Moloco became the third company and the first technology provider certified under the programme, for on-site standard display and sponsored product ads across web, mobile and in-app, with measurement and reporting found to meet the requirements of IAB Europe’s measurement standards.
• When: October 7, 2026. The release gives neither the audit period nor the certificate issue date.
• Where: Announced at IAB Europe’s Retail Media Impact Summit in Amsterdam, in a release datelined Brussels. The programme applies to the European market.
• Why: IAB Europe says buyers need consistent measurement regardless of retailer, network or technology partner, and the programme now extends from retailers to the software that supports them. Five more audits are under way.